Proof The Bible Is True

01/06/19

 

Christianity in China (#39 on the World Watch List) has always lived in tension. Though the Communist Party of China has habitually restricted the freedom of Christians to worship over the last 70 years, the skyrocketing growth of the Chinese church is impossible to miss.

 

Even non-Christian observers have taken notice, with many outlets putting the true number of Christians in China at tens of millions more than the Chinese government officially recognizes. In China, churches include registered state churches that are regulated by the government; covert unregistered “underground” house churches; and unregistered or underground house churches that operate in the open, like Early Rain Covenant Church, which have been tolerated by the government–until recently.

 

The official government line is that freedom of religion is guaranteed in the Chinese constitution. And technically, that’s true—but it comes with a huge asterisk. The constitution enshrines that the state “protects normal religious activities,” which means the Communist Party is responsible for determining what “normal religious activities” are.

 

But even last year, the Christian church in China didn’t perceive the government as a great threat. Indeed, theologian Dr. Richard Mouw wrote earlier in 2017 that “[local religious leaders] do not see President Xi Jinping as hostile to Christianity as such.”

 

However, in the last few months, we’ve seen numerous developments that represent what is now being referred to as an all-out “widespread crackdown” on church leaders and churches throughout China.

 

Source: 3 Major Factors Driving the Crackdown on the Church in China – Open Doors USA